It's the summer before senior year and the alluring Angel is ready to have fun. She's not like her best friend, Inggy, who has a steady boyfriend, good grades, and college plans. Angel isn't sure what she wants to do yet, but she has confidence and experience beyond her years. Still, her summer doesn't start out as planned. Her good friend Joey doesn't want to fool around anymore, he wants to be her boyfriend, while Angel doesn't want to be tied down. As Joey pulls away, and Inggy tours colleges, Angel finds herself spending more time with Inggy's boyfriend, Cork. With its cast of vivid and memorable characters, this tale from the Jersey shore is sure to make some waves.

BETH ANN BAUMAN is the author of Beautiful Girls, a short story collection for adults, Rosie and Skate, and is the recipient of a New York Foundaton for the Arts Fellowship. Growing up, she spent summers on the Jersey shore. She lives in New York City.

Critic reviews for Jersey Angel
All: 30 | Positive: 12 | Negative: 18

Kirkus

Apr 15 2012

Aided by a strong evocation of the tourist-driven rhythms of life on the Central Jersey Shore and a satisfyingly complicated, modern protagonist, this quick read will please readers looking for both nuance and heat in their beach books.

NY Times

Reviewed by Jessica Wakeman
on
May 11 2012

Angel tomcats around as much as, if not more than, any boy in the book...And while Angel’s freedom is not entirely without consequence, it’s refreshing to read about an adolescent girl who follows her hormonal urges without a fate worthy of an after-school special.

The Book Scoop

Reviewed by Rowena
on
May 08 2012

Overall, I kept reading this book because I kept waiting for Angel to get over herself and start making amends for her actions but when it became apparent that she wasn't going to do any of that, I was good and pissed.

reutreads

Reviewed by Reut
on
May 03 2012

For a novel that’s supposed to reveal the people behind the stereotypes Jersey Shore has perpetuated, all I got was a book about cheating and about how you won’t face any consequences for partaking in it.

Her Life With Books

Reviewed by Jessica
on
May 11 2012

book that every reader would feel comfortable handing off to their 12-year-old child? Perhaps not. But I do think Angel’s perspective is unique, the writing evocative, and the mood beachy and sultry and all other things I like about summer.

The Windy Pages

Book Breather

Reviewed by Gabbi
on
Aug 27 2012

I will be blunt and say...it's probably not fit for most YA readers...Angel Cassonetti has a lot of sex. With multiple guys... But what really got to me is that she didn't really face all that many consequences for her actions.

Actin' Up with Books

The Hate-Mongering Tart

Reviewed by E. Kristin Anderson
on
Jul 17 2012

JERSEY ANGEL is a beautifully written breezy read, and if you can get past the fact that Angel is, well, not usually doing herself any favors, you’ll see that this is a book that is not only about growing up, but about growing.